The present invention relates to toys for blowing soap bubbles, and in particular to a spill resistant bubble-making toy where the bubble solution is provided within a closed container except when a bubble forming ring is dipped within the bubble solution for reducing the likelihood of spills.
All sorts of bubble making devices have been developed and designed so as to provide an aesthetically pleasing toy which functions in the making of bubbles from bubble solution, such as soap bubbles from a soap solution. Such toys are known to be shaped in many different ways to simulate objects such as, for example, guns or to resemble animals or other creatures. Such design shapes are important in making an aesthetically pleasing play toy. See, for example, U.S. Pat. No. 3,736,694 to Lebensfeld; U.S. Pat. No. 4,299,049 to Piementel et al.; U.S. Pat. No. 3,021,639 to Allen et al. and U.S. Pat. No. 3,733,736 to Glessner, Sr. as examples of bubble-making toys having designs for aesthetic purposes.
Bubble-making toys of such designs and other more functional designs are known to be provided with numerous mechanisms for making bubbles. The simplest design is a wire or plastic frame having an enclosed portion, such as a circle, which is dipped into bubble-making solution in a container. Bubbles are then produced by a person blowing into the enclosed portion. Such enclosed portions are known to be made of various shapes and sizes so as to produce many different sizes of bubbles and/or multiple bubbles at the same time. Other mechanisms are also provided for generating an airflow so that a person does not need to generate the air utilized in blowing a bubble. See, for example, the Piementel et al. patent noted above and U.S. Pat. No. 5,643,035 to Freese et al. The aforementioned Allen et al. patent includes a mechanism providing multiple film forming devices by which the bubbles are formed so that a continuous stream of bubbles can be generated.
Of such bubble-making toys, those that require a person to generate the air flow for making a bubble are generally prone to having bubble solution spill from the container if the container is not held substantially upright. That is because access must be provided to the bubble solution so that the bubble forming ring or device can be immersed within the bubble forming solution and moved to a position accessible to a user to receive generated air flow. The accessibility to a person for receiving the generated air flow requires that the container holding the bubble solution must be open. In the Allen et al., device the bubble solution is retained within a reservoir that is open through the mouth portion of the ornamental fish design. A more sophisticated bubble blowing toy is described in the Lebensfeld patent where some of the bubble solution is stored within the main body of the container, while a smaller quantity of solution is retained in an upper reservoir, which for bubble blowing action requires that the upper reservoir be open. The upper and main containers are in fluid connection so that solution is transferable between them, and in particular, to maintain a minimal supply within the upper reservoir. This design minimizes spillage in that the upper container can be replenished with bubble solution but yet be holding only a small quantity of bubble solution as compared to the quantity stored within the main container portion.
Another bubble forming device is described in U.S. Pat. No. 2,631,404 to Clausen. In order to minimize bubble solution leakage, a movable member having a bubble forming opening is provided that is biased to a position within the interior of the bubble solution container. The movable member is formed with an integral cover member so that when the bubble forming member is in its biased position, the cover closes the bubble solution container. To produce bubbles, a rod is utilized to move the member from a position immersed within the solution of the container so that the cover is moved away from the container opening until the bubble forming opening is provided in position above the container for receiving generated air to produce a bubble. During the bubble blowing position, the container is opened whereby bubble solution is susceptible to being spilled.
The present invention overcomes the disadvantages and short comings of prior art bubble-making toy devices by providing a container structure having a main compartment for containing bubble solution and an outside compartment within which a bubble forming ring can be positioned, and where the main compartment and outside compartment can be opened to one another by way of a valve so that the bubble forming ring can be brought within the bubble solution and where the main compartment and outside compartment can be closed to one another during bubble generation by a user.
Such a bubble-making toy in accordance with the present invention advantageously reduces the possibility of bubble solution spillage during non use or storage of the bubble-making toy and during the time of bubble generation. By using a valve having a positive closing bias or force, devices in accordance with the present invention are not only auto-closing, but they are better suited for long term storage because the bubble solution is less likely to dry out. Not only are the designs of the present invention substantially non-spill, they are less messy in that drips from the bubble forming ring are caught and permitted to flow back into the container. Moreover, the design allows easy access of the bubble forming ring to the bubble solution. The bubble forming ring is also advantageously substantially self-contained with the container so as to reduce the likelihood of losing the bubble forming ring. The provision of an adequately sized outside chamber also advantageously permits a bubble ring with a filling of bubble solution to be shielded until the time when a user intends to create a bubble.
In particular, an actuator connected with the bubble forming ring which is easily manipulated by a user can be provided. The actuator can also advantageously be used in opening and closing a valve provided between the main compartment and the outside compartment. A biasing means is also preferably utilized to urge the valve toward a closed position between the main and outside compartments.
The advantages of the present invention can be achieved by a spill resistant bubble-making toy comprising a container having a main compartment for receiving and holding a quantity of bubble solution, a divider structure including an outside compartment defining portion having an access opening positioned to permit access between the main compartment and the outside compartment, a valve operatively positioned for selectively opening and closing the access opening, and an actuator movably disposed relative to the outside compartment and including a bubble forming ring, the actuator having a first portion for manipulation by a user and by which a user can move the actuator and thus the bubble forming ring and a second portion for engagement with the valve for opening the valve and permitting the bubble forming ring to be disposed within the main compartment. Preferably, the valve is biased toward the outside compartment defining portion of the divider structure so that the valve closes the access opening under the biasing force. The divider structure may further comprise a top portion that supports the outside compartment defining portion and that closes the main compartment of the container.
Preferably, the actuator extends through the valve and in the direction of its movement sufficiently so that the bubble forming ring can be positioned beyond the top portion of the divider structure, and the actuator second portion comprises a shoulder portion for engagement with the valve as the actuator is moved in a first direction, and the actuator is otherwise movable within the passage of the valve. The shoulder portion may be spaced from the valve when the bubble forming ring is positioned beyond the top portion so that the shoulder engages the valve only after the actuator is moved in the first direction by a distance where a portion of the bubble forming ring is within the outside compartment volume. The valve is preferably openable against the bias force of the valve by continued movement in the first direction of the actuator after engagement of the shoulder with the valve, and the valve is closeable under the influence of its bias force upon movement of the actuator in a second direction opposite to the first direction after the valve is opened. The bubble-making toy can be sized and configured so that a quantity of bubble solution can be stored within the main compartment below the valve and outside compartment and so that the valve and bubble forming ring can be positioned within bubble solution when stored within the main compartment by movement of the actuator in the first direction. More preferably, the actuator extends in the first direction so as to further pass through a passage of the container by way of a wet seal that permits the actuator to move in its first and second directions so that the first portion of the actuator is provided below the container.
In accordance with a preferred embodiment of the present invention, the bubble-making toy has an ornamental external surface that may be shaped as an object or creature. For example, the container can be sized and shaped and provided with an ornamental external surface to simulate an ice cream cone.
Another aspect of the present invention is a method for making bubbles by such a spill resistant bubble-making toy, the method comprising the steps of providing a container that is divided into plural compartments including at least a main compartment having a quantity of bubble solution therein and an outside compartment that is open to outside of the container and openable and closeable to the main compartment by a valve; providing an actuator having a first portion for manipulation by a user and a bubble forming ring; manipulating the actuator to move the bubble forming ring in a first direction from the outside compartment to within the main compartment after opening the valve; immersing the bubble forming ring within the bubble solution while the valve is open for picking up a film of bubble solution on the bubble forming ring; further manipulating the actuator to move the bubble forming ring in a second direction that is opposite to the first direction from within the bubble solution in the main compartment, through the outside compartment and from the container for access to a user; closing the valve; and directing a fluid flow toward the bubble forming ring.
Preferably, the step of manipulating the actuator to move the bubble forming ring within the main compartment comprises the actuator engaging the valve and then opening the valve by continued movement of the actuator in the first direction, and after such engagement, moving the bubble forming ring into the main compartment by the continued actuator movement in the first direction. The step of manipulating the actuator to move the bubble forming ring within the main compartment may also include moving the actuator relative to the valve for a distance in the first direction before a second portion of the actuator engages with the valve. Preferably, the bubble forming ring is moved to be positioned within the outside compartment before the valve is opened, the bubble forming ring is moved to be positioned within the main compartment by the actuator opening the valve against a bias force that urges the valve to a closed position of the outside compartment to the main compartment, the bubble forming ring is moved back into the outside compartment after it is immersed in bubble solution by moving the actuator in the second direction and after the valve is closed under the influence of the bias force, and continued movement of the bubble forming ring from the outside compartment after it is immersed occurs while the valve is kept in a closed position.